Through the sheer power of her voice and emotion, singer Arooj Aftab has the gift of being able to move people – even if they might not understand her lyrics. She also knows how intense her music can sometimes be, which she softens with disarming humor and charm when on stage. Aftab grew up in the 1990s in Pakistan, where she was surrounded by Urdu poetry, but also picked up snippets of American boy bands and other pop material. This has come to shape her idiosyncratic style, which is a blend of fusion, jazz, electronica, neo-Sufi, folk, indie pop, and classical, Hindustani, and minimal music. During her time as a music student in America, it didn’t take long for her to be discovered. Her intensely emotional album Vulture Prince earned her five-star reviews, and she became the first Pakistani woman ever to win a Grammy in the category Best Global Music Performance, for the single Mohabbat. Last year, Aftab also participated in the impressive The Diaspora Suite at the festival.
